By Jeff Ginn Harvard is the oldest and, arguably, the most prestigious university in America. Not surprisingly, the competition for admission is stiff. Only about 5% of those who apply are actually accepted. Listen to these academic credentials for incoming freshmen: The average ACT score is 35 (36 is the highest score possible) The average SAT score is 1512 (1600 is the highest score possible) The average GPA is 4.04 To get into Harvard, you have to be nearly perfect academically. Truth is, it is hard to get into Harvard. Let me pivot and ask you: “Is it hard to get into heaven?” Let me offer an answer: No, it is not hard; it is impossible--based on your own qualifications (and mark those final words well). Listen to Jesus give the admission guidelines for heaven: “unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). Were that standard not sufficiently high, he adds: “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). What Jesus is saying is that you don’t have to be nearly perfect; you have to be perfect. Gulp. Perhaps you’ve been tempted to take solace in the hope that God might grade us … [Read more...]

By Waylon Bailey In America, this is Memorial Day weekend, and today is Memorial Day–a day of giving thanks and remembering those who gave their lives in defense of our freedom. You probably know that Memorial Day began sometime in the aftermath of the American War Between the States. Both in the north and the south, there were days to place flowers at graves and to remember. Our Civil War claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history and by the late 1860’s Americans in towns of both the north and the south started having springtime remembrances of those soldiers whose bodies lay in “almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land.” Memorial Day became a federal holiday in 1971. We certainly need to remember, and we need to give thanks. According to how young you are, it may be hard for you to imagine that 400,000 Americans died in WWII. Many of the veterans of that struggle for the freedom of the world are still living alongside those who have fought in Korea, Vietnam, and every conflict since. Families and communities have paid a high price for our freedom and our way of life. Let us give thanks for all those who served and for those who paid the ultimate price. I can’t think of sacrifice … [Read more...]

By Lane Corley Along with Vacation Bible School, summer offers us some great opportunities for outreach and seed planting in our communities. Here’s a few that I’ve tried or learned from other Louisiana churches: Water bottles for front yard lawn mowers Fill a few ice chests full of ice cold water or Gatorade, then head out on Saturday morning and watch for people working in their front yard. Interrupt them by giving them a bottle and a small connection card to your church. I promise they won’t mind. Face painting or balloon animals at local festivals Every Louisiana community has a festival, car show, farmers market or something. Add to the gathering by offering something fun for kids. Face painting is easy for almost anyone. Poll your team for other talents that might be unique and entertaining. Don’t forget to have invite cards to your church or Bible study. Fun for kids at multi-housing complexes If you haven’t already, you should get to know the managers at local multi-housing complexes. They’re often required by upper management to provide events for the park and in my experience they are stressed about that! Offer to help by extending a VBS activity or showing up with a snow cone machine or bounce house a few … [Read more...]

By David Jeremiah EL CAJON, Calif. (BP) - We all say it: "Let's meet at the church." Somewhere along the way we began referring to "the building where the church meets" as "the church." The early church started meeting in homes and in the temple court in Jerusalem (Acts 2:46). But today, the church convenes in a variety of locations. Some congregations meet in converted storefronts while others assemble in beautiful buildings. But they all serve the same purpose: They are a place for us to gather and worship the Lord. Hopefully all Christian congregations will remember that the building is not "the" church. The first-century church proved beyond a doubt that buildings are not necessary for the church to grow and prosper and change the world. Are buildings convenient? Yes. They provide a central place for the true church of Jesus Christ to meet for worship, instruction, celebration and ministry. Just as it's nice to have a home in which to invite friends, so a church building should serve as a "home" to the community. Church membership: An option or not? Far too many Christians have decided that church affiliation is optional. That is not a biblical idea, but a worldly one. And it parallels the lack of … [Read more...]

Fellow Patriots, Yesterday was a great day for our state and for our country. ???????? On behalf of all Louisianians, I had the distinct honor of welcoming President Trump to our state and thanking him for making and keeping America great. I started the day by greeting the President as he stepped off Air Force One. To make sure President Trump knows that Louisianians are behind him, our campaign put up a billboard welcoming him. During his fantastic speech, the President graciously mentioned our close work together. I spoke to FOX Business about how the President's policies of cutting taxes and returning power back to the people are working for our country. President Trump's agenda of lowering taxes, supporting our families, and bringing back quality jobs has put our country on the right track after years of liberal Democrat failures under Obama. But Louisiana is still suffering because of Governor Edwards' failed tax and spend liberal policies. The President has already demonstrated how we can turn this around. We will follow his example so that Louisiana can finally start winning again. Thank you for your support. We will always stand behind our President and we will always put Louisiana … [Read more...]

By Waylon Bailey All Scripture is true, and all Scripture teaches us truths by which we can live in strength and power. Genesis three is especially instructive in how to live in the midst of sin and temptation. Here are three truths from God’s Word. First, we all struggle with temptation. Like Eve we see things we think we must have. She saw that the fruit was good for food, a delight to the eyes, and desirable to make one wise.  Those were things she thought she could not get any other way. We assume the same thing about so many other desirable aspects of our lives. John the apostle said something similar: “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides for ever“ (1 John2:16-17). Second, we will have to deal with the consequences of our rebellion. We live in a moral universe where our actions have consequences. The sin of Adam and Eve set up a cause and effect relationship that has resulted in harm throughout the entire creation. Paul asserted: “For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of … [Read more...]

By Rebecca Holloway Just a quick thought for you today... The word "good" came up four times in my quiet time today. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28) [B]eing confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6) Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness. (Psalm 107:8-9, NKJV) While doing a quick word study on "good" in those New Testament verses, it occurred to me that our definition of "good" and God's definition are two different things. Our version tends to be that everything is going to work out to make us the happiest and most blessed possible. It's all going to the turn out the way we want. But here's the thing: the way we want it to turn out may not be God's best for us. Because God, in His very nature, is good. We are sinful beings. There is no one righteous. (Romans 3:10) We have all sinned and fallen short of His glory. (Romans 3:23) Our good is as filthy rags. (Isaiah … [Read more...]

By Jeff Ginn Every year the Gallup organization releases a “World Happiness Report.” It ranks the countries of the world as to their happiness. Happiness is measured, in part, with survey questions such as, “Are [you] very happy, pretty happy, or not too happy?” “Very happy” responses are worth three points. “Pretty happy” is worth two points and “not too happy” is worth one point. You might be interested to know where the United States ranks in the 2019 report. Let me go ahead and break the suspense: we are not #1. Despite our relative affluence and power, we don’t even make the top five or top ten. We barely squeak inside the top 20 at the #19 position. That’s ironic, isn’t it? There’s an entire chapter in the “World Happiness Report” that explores this disconnect. Chapter five’s title begins, “The Sad State of Happiness in the United States.” Here’s a paragraph from that chapter: “This decline in happiness and mental health seems paradoxical. By most accounts, Americans should be happier now than ever. The violent crime rate is low, as is the unemployment rate. Income per capita has steadily grown over the last few decades. This is the Easterlin paradox: As the standard of living improves, so should happiness – but … [Read more...]

By Rick Warren “How sweet your words taste to me; they are sweeter than honey” (Psalm 119:103 NLT). After my wife Kay and I got engaged, we did something unusual: We moved to opposite sides of the world. She moved to Birmingham, Alabama, to work in an inner-city church, and I moved to Nagasaki, Japan, to plant a church. We were separated most of our engagement.In those days, we didn’t have cell phones. It cost $15 a minute to call Japan, and we were dirt poor. So we only had one alternative: writing letters. We each wrote a letter every day, and receiving hers was the highlight of my day during that time. The moment a love letter arrived, I would tear it open and read it. Then I would reread it and try to read between the lines. I’d underline and memorize portions of it. I was trying to gather every drop of love this woman had for me. What if we read the Bible—God’s love letter to us—that same way? If you’re not poring over the Bible, trying to glean every bit of wisdom from it, then you are not fully tasting the banquet that God has prepared for you. Psalm 119:103 says, “How sweet your words taste to me; they are sweeter than honey” (NLT). This Bible is full of nourishment—spiritual food that will keep you healthy, … [Read more...]